Man charged in double murder has trial postponed

Double murder defendant Thomas John Allen McDonald, shown during an earlier court hearing, has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

The trial of a Mountain Gate man accused of viciously hacking two people to death last year with a wood-splitting maul was put off today in Shasta County Superior Court because his defense attorney is in poor health.

A new trial date for double murder defendant Thomas John Allen McDonald has not yet been set, but it's likely his trial won't begin until late this year or early next year.

McDonald, 36, had been scheduled to begin standing trial next week for first-degree murder in the hacking deaths of Karl Bradshaw, 54, of Redding, and neighbor Ralph Gearhart Torborg, 84, of Mountain Gate.

But defense attorney Adam Ryan told Superior Court Judge William Gallagher that McDonald's attorney, Frank O'Connor, is in bad health and has taken a leave of absence from his law practice.

Although Ryan said it's expected that O'Connor will recover from his health woes, that recovery could take some time.

As such, Ryan was appointed to take over the murder case and the trial was put off so Ryan can prepare his defense.

McDonald, who said he was aware of O'Connor's medical condition and had no objection to Ryan taking over his case, is scheduled to return to court on Aug. 12 to set a new trial date.

The prosecutor also voiced no objection to the trial's continuance.

Ryan told Gallagher he's tentatively scheduled to be in another murder trial in Trinity County later this month, while Gallagher said he's scheduled to preside over still another murder trial in September.

With those upcoming trials in mind, it's expected McDonald's trial won't get underway for a few months.

McDonald has pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity.

Two psychologists who evaluated him said earlier this year they believe the Mountain Gate man was insane when he killed Bradshaw and Torborg during a February 2012 rampage near McDonald's Wonderland Boulevard residence.

If the case does go to trial, it will be held in two separate phases.

The first phase, called the guilt phase, will determine whether McDonald is guilty of murder.

The second phase would determine whether he was sane at the time.

A former mental health patient and parolee, McDonald also is charged with aggravated mayhem, premeditated attempted murder and other related crimes stemming from the attacks on the men who died and two roommates he also attacked.